[rd200]

Does anyone have a calf in with their dairy goat for a companion??
I got a milking goat about a month ago and I also got 2 companion wethers along with her. they are actually her mother's kids from this year. Anyways, I don't know what their deal is, but now they are trying desperately to suck on her. She spends the majority of the day/night ramming them to get away but they just don't let it go. The past 2 morning Ive went out to milk her and she's almost completely sucked dry! She must have given up overnight and let them drink. So now ill have to separate them, which won't work good because I dont' have 2 pastures or 2 pens to put them in separately. And if they are suppose to be companions, they shouldn't be separate!
I had been thinking about getting a bull calf to raise for the freezer. I was wondering if I should just ditch the 2 wethers and get the calf as a companion for my Doe.
Do calves and goats like each other???

 

[erica4481]

I bottle fed a steer calf earlier this year and kept him with my goats .they got along great, slept in the barn together,and grazed together. The only problem I found was that even though he was castrated he still practiced his breeding techniques on me if I turned my back or bent over. He also did the same thing to my goats. Once he got a couple hundred pounds or so I had to sell him because I was afraid he was gonna hurt me and my goats jumping on us.

 

[sunrisefarms17]

I have 4 calves and 6 goats in 1 pen they play wonderful together with no problems.....my calves are all heifers tho....but if u want a certain amount of feed to go to a certain animal u might want to have 2 hay feeders because the calves usually beat the goats to the hay haha but other than that they play great!

 

[Jessica84]

I ended up with a bottle baby calf this last winter and the only place I could put her was with the goats. They got along except for one grumpy old goat, she would beat the crap out of my calf When she started to get bigger I had to take her out because she would beat up the goats, never the kids just the goats. I think if its one on one that would work out of, bull calf, not really sure. You might just have to put him in the freezer at a smaller size. Im also guessing that since she is a milk goat she has no horns, if she does be careful about her poking out the calfs eye since he will be bigger and at that right size for that. Since she knows shes a goat Im sure she will not be too happy at first but she will adjust. I have a sheep that thinks her herd is the dogs, and I got a doeling from Nevada last year and she lived with the cows for a whole month before she decided that the other goats were ok......But I seem to have freak animals lol

 

[dezak91]

You most certainly can keep them together. Cows are very docile and as you can see in the attached picture, a hill to climb. We had our steer up to 1200 pounds before he was freezer bound without any issues.